Terraced paddy fields are covered in morning mist in Yuanyang. China will increase grain supplies, open up more land for planting vegetables and crack down on hoarding as the government steps up efforts to combat rising inflation.

An engineer clears snow off the nose of a plane at Edinburgh Airport. The airport was closed Wednesday because of heavy snow. At Gatwick, south of London, all flights also were grounded. Meanwhile, the worst early-winter weather in almost two decades caused severe delays on roads and rail lines.

Police beat a protesting motorized-rickshaw driver as the drivers blocked a portion of a Manila road, causing heavy traffic. Several people were hurt when the dispersal turned violent, with police firing tear gas and the drivers throwing stones. The protest was triggered by a decision by Manila city hall to ban the rickshaw -- the cheapest mode of transportation for many inner-city residents -- from the city's major roads.

Brazilian riot police check the scene after exploding the bunker of a suspected drug lord in the Vila Cruzeiro shanty town. The military and police last week began a gang sweep of the area, which authorities say has become one of the most feared and lawless parts of Rio. The operation was seen as a key step in securing Rio ahead of its hosting duties for World Cup events in 2014 and the Olympic Games in 2016.

Pictures in the News | Dec. 1, 2010

To commemorate World AIDS Day, we have images from South Africa, Spain, India, Hungary, Turkey, China, England and San Francisco, just a few of the many places where rallies and awareness events were held.

Wednesday also marks the first day of Hanukkah, the eight-day-long Jewish Festival of Lights that marks the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in the second century BC.

In the English countryside, a snow-covered deer becomes an unwitting participant in the frigid festivities sweeping much of Europe while in the warmer climes of Costa Rica, a clearly misinformed ant takes a stroll, quite possibly its last, on a snake.

We also have Father Frost, the Russian equivalent of Santa Claus; pictorial scenes from Italy and China; and the aftermath of a police action in the Vila Cruzeiro shanty town in Rio de Janeiro.